About

Blogger news

Tune in to 89x for my radio broadcasts...

Listen to Time Warp on 89X - the long running classic alternative show airs Sunday mornings from 8am - 12pm ET. Listen on the radio (88.7) in Detroit, or stream it worldwide on the net. The Time Warp playlist archive is posted here.

Search This Blog

2015/06/29

Dean Wareham has uploaded a handful of early Luna demos from 1991 onto Bandcamp to help raise funds for Terry Tolkin (music executive who signed Luna to Elektra back in the day). Wareham reveals that Tolkin is now faced with a severe illness and mounting medical bills and he'll be donating all the funds from the demos directly to Tolkin:

"Luna (at this early stage Dean Wareham) was signed to Elektra by A&R man Terry Tolkin who had previously worked at Rough Trade, Touch & Go and Caroline Records. Terry now lives in New Orleans and is gravely ill. He is fighting a rare and aggressive virus that has his doctors perplexed, and facing huge medical bills for hospital visits, thrice-weekly dialysis and prescription drug co-pays."

All the tracks from Luna Demos 1991 were recorded after the breakup of Galaxie 500 and before the release of Luna's debut album Lunapark in 1992 (finished versions of all the songs were released on Lunapark). The EP is available to download off Bandcamp for 7 dollars (fans can donate more if they desire). Stream the demo version of "Anesthesia" below and purchase Luna Demos 1991here.

Johnny Marr released the third single off his solo record Playland. "Candidate" is available as a 7" single and digital download and is backed with a brand new song titled "Exit Connection." Order the 7" single from your favorite record store or purchase the digital version off iTunes. Both tracks are available to stream below along with the official video for "Candidate."

2015/06/28

2016 marks Placebo's 20th anniversary, and to celebrate the band announced plans to reissue its first five studio albums, Placebo, Without You I'm Nothing, Black Market Music, Sleeping With Ghosts, and Meds. Over the course of the next year, each album will be re-issued on 180 gram heavyweight vinyl, beginning with the reissue of Placebo's 1996 debut self-titled release on July 31st. To coincide with the reissue of Placebo, the band will also release a separate b-sides compilation on July 31st which collects 18 songs recorded during (and around the time of) the Placebo recording sessions and tour cycle. If that wasn't enough, Placebo will also celebrate the release of the reissues by uploading rare archival footage of performances, interviews, and other videos from each album's era/tour cycle onto the official Placebo You Tube channel.

The release dates and limited edition colors for the other albums in the reissue series are as follows:

We're getting closer to the release of Monumentary, the highly anticipated Wax Trax! documentary which tells the story of the legendary music store and record label. Julia Nash, daughter of Wax Trax! co-founder Jim Nash, has been overseeing everything Wax Trax! since the death of her father and co-founder Dannie Flesher, including the Monumentary film. Though Nash and the producers have been able to self-fund most of the project, they need to raise some extra funds to help offset post-production costs (music clearance, audio mixing, etc). Rather than get deep pockets involved (which can lead to control issues, creative differences, etc), Nash decided to launch a 30 day Kickstarter campaign and offer up some rare and unique items for campaign rewards. Some of the items available include test pressings, vintage posters, and the film's soundtrack on limited edition colored vinyl.

So far the campaign is on track to be fully funded -- only three days in and the Kickstarter is already 75% funded! Still, this is an all or nothing campaign (plus don't miss an opportunity to snag some rare Wax Trax! merch), so be sure to head over and check out the Kickstarter here. The campaign video is available to view below:

2015/06/26

Veruca Salt are preparing to release their new studio album Ghost Notes on July 10th. Over the last few weeks the band issued a few tracks from the album -- "Laughing In The Sugar Bowl" and "The Gospel According To Saint Me" -- and now they've premiered another new song. Stream "Empty Bottle" below via Noisey:

Pre-order Ghost Notes from Amazon or Pledge Music . The official video for the single "Laughing In The Sugar Bowl" is available to stream below:

As previously reported, The Jesus & Mary Chain are set to release a live concert recording Live at Barrowlands on July 31st. The set was captured during the band's show in Glasgow during their 30th anniversary Psychocandy tour in November 2014. The band has now premiered the live version of "Reverence" from the collection which is available to stream via Spin below:

The deluxe edition of Live At Barrowlands includes Jesus & Mary Chain's full performance of Psychocandy on 180 gram heavyweight vinyl, the "prelude set" featuring 7 greatest hits/fan favorites pressed on a 10" vinyl, a cd of the entire performance, audio interview with Jim & William Reid, and a 40 page hardcover book. The deluxe edition will be limited to 300 copies worldwide and is available to pre-order from My Play Direct or Amazon UK. Fans in the U.S. can also order the import from Amazon U.S.

The tracklisting for the set is posted below:

Psychocandy LP

Side A

01. Just Like Honey
02. The Living End
03. Taste The Floor
04. The Hardest Walk
05. Cut Dead
06. In A Hole
07. Taste Of Cindy

2015/06/24

R. Ring (duo featuring Kelley Deal and Mike Montgomery) kick off their North American tour in Detroit on July 25th with a performance at BFF Fest 2015. The Dayton duo -- Deal lives in Dayton, Ohio; Montgomery lives in Dayton, Kentucky -- is hitting the road in support of two split singles; "Loud Underneath" split 7" with Protomartyr, and a TBA split 7" single with Quailbones which is due out in July. Purchase both splits from Sofaburn and stream "Loud Underneath" below:

Meanwhile, Kelley Deal discussed how she fought drug addiction by taking up knitting in a new interview with Loud & Quiet magazine. Deal's interview can be read in full here and her 2008 book Bags That Rock: Knitting On The Road with Kelley Deal is available to purchase here. R. Ring tour dates

2015/06/23

David Bowie announced plans for a new series of boxsets to celebrate his distinguished career. The first in the series, Five Years 1969 - 1973, focuses on Bowie's early years and collects all of the material officially released by Bowie during that period of his career. The set will be released as a 10 LP/12 CD box, a 10LP/13 piece vinyl set, and as a digital download on September 25th.

Five Years 1969 - 1973 includes 6 original studio albums, 2 live albums, the Ken Scott 2003 mix of the Rise & Fall Of Ziggy Stardust & the Spiders From Mars, and a new 2 disc collection titled Re:Call 1 which collects non-album singles, single versions, b-sides and more. A book containing rare photos, technical notes, press reviews from the archive, and a foreward written by Ray Davies of the Kinks is also included.

The CD version of the set contains mini-vinyl versions of the original albums on gold colored CDs; the vinyl version contains the same material as the CD set pressed onto 180 gram heavyweight vinyl.

Pre-order the CD version of the set here, and the LP version here. Fans who pre-order from Bowie's official store will receive a free copy of the David Bowie Pinups Radio Show on CD or 10" vinyl. View the unboxing video and tracklisting for the set below, and find out more about Five Years 1969 - 1973here.

2015/06/22

New Order announced details and debuted the artwork for their new studio record today. The album, titled Music Complete, is the band's first proper studio album since 2005's Waiting For The Sirens' Call and notably New Order's first record since Peter Hook's departure (also the first record in almost 15 years to include Gillian Gilbert, who rejoined the band a few years ago). Music Complete will be released through Mute Records on September 25th.

According to Bernard Sumner, unlike some of their recent albums, this time around the band did NOT shy away from synthesizers. The 11 track album features two collaborative songs with Chemical Brothers' Tom Rowlands -- "Singularity," the song New Order debuted live last summer, and another track titled "Unlearn This Hatred." In a previous interview, Sumner revealed New Order recorded 3 tracks with Rowlands, so it's possible the third song may wind up as a b-side down the road.

Also of note: The artwork for both the album and limited edition boxset was directed by longtime Joy Division/New Order/Factory Records' designer, the legendary Peter Saville.

New Order unleashes the first official single from Music Complete in August. Until then, fans will get a taste of the new album via a series of album trailers featuring snippets of new music. The first trailer in the series is available to stream below:

Pre-orders for Music Complete are available now. Choose from the standard 11 track digital download/CD, double LP (on black vinyl), limited edition double LP (clear vinyl), and a limited edition 8 LP vinyl deluxe box set. The boxset includes Music Complete on double clear vinyl, extended versions of all 11 songs on red, blue, yellow, grey, white 12" vinyl, plus 1 sided black etched vinyl. New Order will be signing 200 copies of the box set and will be randomly be shipped to fans who purchase from the band's official store (box set ships in November). Visit New Order's store here.

Ride played the Best Kept Secret (BKS) festival in Hilvarenbeek (Netherlands) on Saturday night. The band's set was broadcast on local television and now an archive of the performance has appeared online. The video is a bit put of focus, but the audio is excellent -- stream the full concert below:

If you missed this previously, here's excellent quality video of Ride's May 29th set at Primavera Sound in Barcelona

Duran Duran premiered a funky new single titled "Pressure Off" -- the track featuring Nile Rodgers and Janelle Monáe serves as the first single from the band's 14th studio album Paper Gods, which arrives on September 11th. Stream "Pressure Off" below:

2015/06/18

Tears For Fears returns to the Detroit area for a show at Freedom Hill on September 24th. The pre-sale for tickets is going on today (password: FHILL2015) and the general onsale is tomorrow (Friday, June 19th) at 10am ET. Purchase tickets here.

Last year Tears For Fears celebrated the 30th anniversary of Songs From The Big Chair. Part of the festivities included a Spotify session -- similar to VH1's Storytellers -- where they performed and discussed some of their classic songs. Watch the session below:

01. Everybody Wants To Rule The World
02. Sowing The Seeds Of Love
03. Head Over Heels
04. Mad World
05. The Working Hour
06. Shout

The Orb return with a new album titled Moonbuilding 2703 AD. If chilled out spacy synth and samples are your thing, this is a most glorious listen. The record arrives on June 23rd but is streaming in full ahead of its release and can be streamed below via GQ. Pre-order the album here.

The Orb hit the road for a North American tour, which includes a stop at the Magic Bag. Tickets for the Detroit area stop, September 26th at the Magic Bag in Ferndale go on sale today at 10am ET. Dates are posted below:

2015/06/17

The Damned are heading back out on the road for a few tour dates this fall and they'll bring the tour to St. Andrew's Hall in Detroit on September 10th. The pre-sale is going on now (password: new rose) and the general onsale is Friday, June 19th at 10am.

The documentary The Damned: Don't You Wish That We Were Dead premiered earlier this year and features all four original members of the band, along with appearances from Mick Jones, Chrissie Hynde, Steve Diggle, Keith Morris, Nick Mason, and more. Several screening dates for the film have been announced and info on a wider release is expected soon. View the screening dates and watch the trailer and outtake from the film below:

2015/06/16

The Radio Dept made good on its promise to release new music! The band is back with enchanting dreampop goodness in the form of a new 3 song release titled Occupied. The limited edition EP is available to purchase from Amazon or download from iTunes. Stream the title track "Occupied" which samples "Laura Palmer's Theme" (off Twin Peaks soundtrack) below. Stream the full EP on Spotify.

Sleater-Kinney announced several more dates for their upcoming U.S. tour in support of No Cities To Love. The extended tour itinerary now includes a Detroit area stop at the Royal Oak Music Theater on December 8th. The general onsale for tickets is June 19th at 10am ET.

Johnny Marr chose his favorite 13 albums for the Quietus' popular feature Baker's Dozen. Records from Wire, Roxy Music, Magazine, and Velvet Underground were among his Marr's favorites, and he revealed Buzzcocks and their 1978 debut album Another Music In A Different Kitchen was a major influence on the Smiths:

"Buzzcocks made modern guitar music that was appropriately punky but sounded razor-sharp on the radio in the middle of such a load of mainstream nonsense...That, coupled with the aesthetic of the band and the way they did their sleeve artwork and the way they dressed, was a very potent combination.

Buzzcocks influenced The Smiths massively in the way we approached our record sleeves and our choice of independent record company - because of the Buzzcocks we took on a Mancunian DIY ethic, whilst being in the charts."

Foals unleashed the video for their intense, dramatic new song "What Went Down" today. The song serves as the title track to the band's fourth studio record, which arrives on August 28th. Foals' Yannis Philipakis recently described the new set of songs as their most volatile, intense record yet, and if "What Went Down" is any indication, he sure wasn't kidding. Watch the video for "What Went Down" below:

Several pre-order options for What Went Down are available: digital album download (10 tracks), deluxe digital album download, physical CD, CD/DVD, LP, and boxset. The DVD includes two live performances, the official music video for "What Went Down," and more; the boxset includes the album pressed on limited edition clear vinyl, the DVD, download code, and bonus cd with demos. Take a look at the options and order from iTunes, Amazon, and the Foals' webstore (boxset only available through band's store).

2015/06/15

Beck released a new song titled "Dreams" today -- sonically a return to the funky two-tables-and-a-microphone version of Beck! In an interview with Alt 98.7 Beck described "Dreams" as fusing together different worlds of garage rock and raw energy with a beat, and he confirmed "Dreams" has a similar vibe and energy to the full length record he's going to be releasing "asap" (though the album still has no title or official release date as of yet). "Dreams" is available now as a digital download. Stream "Dreams" below:

2015/06/14

Winter is a four piece band out of Los Angeles serving up a delicious blend of dream-psych-gaze pop. The band's most recent album, Supreme Blue Dream, was released in March through Lolipop Records and is fast becoming a contender for swoonworthiest album of the year. Stream the glorious "Someone Like You" below and download the full album through Amazon or Bandcamp. Catch up with Winter on Facebook and Twitter. [Note: not to be confused with the doom metal band also named Winter.]

2015/06/13

Paul Weller is on tour in North America in support of the newly released Saturns Patterns. While Weller won't be able to play every city on this tour, he has agreed to let Yahoo/Live Nation webcast his June 15th show. The live stream from Toronto's Danforth Music Hall kicks off at 9pm ET and the archive of the show will be available to stream (as a continuous loop) for ~ 20 hours after the show. Stream the webcast on theYahoo/Live Nation site here.

While you're waiting for the live stream, watch Weller's recent hourlong performance for BBC Radio 2 below:

2015/06/12

Liam Gallagher joined Roger Daltrey, Ian Broudie, and ex-Oasis bandmate Paul Arthurs (aka Bonehead) for a performance of the Who's "My Generation." The supergroup rocked out on the two hour revival of old school UK program TFI Friday this evening. The episode also reportedly included performances from Blur and Mansun. Video of Gallagher et al rocking out is available to view below via NME.

Berlin krautrock/psych duo The KVB released an instrumental album this week titled Mirror Being. The album is full of sweet atmospheric, mesmerizing, experimental beats and can be obtained as a physical cd through Amazon, or on limited edition frosted vinyl through the KVB's store. The band recently began work on another full length album which is expected out before year's end.

Beck returns with a new single titled "Dreams" on June 15th -- the track drops as a digital download on June 15th at midnight (Sunday night/Monday morning). Beck reportedly told L.A. station 98.7 that "Dreams" will serve as the first single from his forthcoming album which still does not have an official title or release date. Beck decided to release "Dreams" ahead of some upcoming tour dates in order to familiarize fans with the song they're sure to hear during his live sets. In the interview he also revealed the music on his new album is "sonically opposite" from 2014's Grammy winning Morning Phase.

Public Image Limited have announced the release of a new career-spanning greatest hits collection. Rise: The Collection features 16 songs culled from PiL's catalog (1978-2012) and includes an extensive 24 page booklet with liner notes written by PiL, plus pictures from the band's archive. The collection is available to purchase now through Amazon. The track listing for Rise: The Collection is posted below.

As previously reported, Public Image Limited returns with a brand new album What The World Needs Now, on September 4th. The first single from the record will be released in August. Dates for the North American leg of PiL's world tour will be announced shortly.

Kitchens of Distinction vocalist/bassist Patrick Fitzgerald released a new EP today under his solo moniker Stephen Hero. The title track is a beautiful collaboration with Tanya Donelly (Belly, Breeders), which Fitzgerald describes as "a sonic stratosphere of lovesong." Stream "Golden" below and purchase The Golden EP through Bandcamp; the songs are available as individual downloads, but those who purchase the full EP receive two additional bonus songs (six songs in all). Go here to purchase.

2015/06/11

A new Morrissey interview has been published ahead of his North American tour, which kicks off tonight in New Orleans. Though the interview was filled with standard Morrissey subjects (vegetarianism, politics, still no record deal), he did offer up some newsier info -- he confirms he's written a novel, he discussed Brandon Flowers' stalking abilities, and -- SHOCKER -- he claims to have died for 9 minutes!

Morrissey reveals his 2013 bout of "corrosively toxic food poisoning" did more than put the kibosh on his 2013 South American tour, it actually caused him to die. Back in 2013 he told fans he underwent "five days of round the clock medical attention" to recover. In the new interview he admitted (during an offhanded comment about his favorite cities) that he actually died for 9 minutes during the food poisoning episode, though he didn't offer up additional details: "I’m also always excited to be in South America, even though the last visit to Peru gave me food poisoning and I officially died for nine minutes. That was fun.​"

Moz confirmed previous reports that he's written a novel, though he didn't elaborate on the content/subject matter, title, etc. He would only say that he has no idea when it will be published:

"The book is with the publishers who are deciding on a date to publish. It could be tomorrow, it could be 2071. It’s all in the hands of the publishing gods."​

Morrissey heaped praise on the Killers' cover of "Why Don't You Find Out For Yourself" and said he was aware of -- and entertained by -- Brandon Flowers stalking him:

"The Killers covered one of my songs, “Why Don’t You Find Out For Yourself”, and I thought it was so magnificent and so carefully done, so I’ll be forever thankful to them for that, and Brandon always says good things about me in the press, which is a relief! Yes, I think he was stalking me at a hotel a few years back, but I could see him hiding and I knew what he was doing… which was quite funny. Well, to me, anyway."

Sub Pop announced Eric Trip's 1993 stellar debut album Love Tara will be reissued on vinyl. The repress is available to pre-order now through the official Sub Pop store. Fans who pre-order early will receive the album on Loser edition colored vinyl (white vinyl); once the supply of the limited edition Loser version is exhausted, the standard black vinyl will be available. Info and pre-order here.

Veruca Salt debuted the official video for "Laughing In The Sugar Bowl" today. The video was directed by Tim Rutili, who worked on the band's classic "Seether" video from 1994. Watch the official video below:

"Laughing In The Sugar Bowl" is the first single off the album Ghost Notes, which is the first full-length album to feature all original members since 1996. Ghost Notes arrives on July 10th and is available to pre-order here.

2015/06/10

A Place To Bury Strangers announced a North American tour in support of Transfixiation. The new set of dates includes a stop in Detroit at the Majestic Cafe on October 3rd. Tickets for the Detroit show go on sale this Friday, June 12th through Ticketweb.

View the tour itinerary and stream a few tracks from Transfixiation below:

2015/06/09

Primal Scream were on the road gigging in North America last month. Keyboardist Martin Duffy assembled a short film featuring video and pictures taken by the band while on tour. Watch his creation, American Scream 2, below:

J Mascis and Kim Gordon debuted a new collaborative song titled "Slow Boy," which they recorded for Converse Music. Converse is releasing CONS EP Vol. 3, the third installment in their music series later this month, but fans can stream "Slow Boy" and grab a free download of the track now from Soundcloud or the official Converse Music website.

FFS -- the new project featuring Sparks and Franz Ferdinand -- released their self-titled debut album this week. Today in celebration of the record's release, the band did an AMA on Reddit and fielded questions from fans. During the chat, FFS confirmed they will tour the U.S. and revealed that they're planning to perform some of the songs from the new album, as well as songs from Sparks and songs from Franz Ferdinand. They didn't indicate exactly when the tour will take place, but said they're hoping the news will be announced soon.

FFS also briefly discussed the video for "Johnny Delusional," which includes some fancy camera work:

Ron Mael: "It was this use of repetitive motion that we kind of developed into the video. We didn't have anything to do with the technical bit but it was pretty complex."

Alex Kapranos added, "We all wanted to dress the same as well as to make the character - Johnny Delusional."

Watch the video for "Johnny Delusional" below and read the AMA archive here.

Robert Plant has postponed tonight's show at Meadow Brook due to acute laryngitis and the show has been rescheduled for September 10th. Pixies, who were scheduled to open for Plant at Meadow Brook, will NOT be performing at the September 10th make up date. Those interested in a refund can obtain one at point of purchase.

But great news, Pixies' fans! Since they are already in Detroit, the band will indeed play a show tonight, but it won't be at Meadow Brook. Pixies announced they'll play an "impromptu" (but full) show at St. Andrew's Hall tonight. Tickets are on sale now through Ticketmaster/Live Nation.

2015/06/08

Garbage announced dates for the North American run of their 20 Years Queer tour, which sees the band performing their self-titled debut album in full. The tour includes a Detroit area stop October 19th at the Royal Oak Music Theatre. The general onsale for tickets is Friday, the pre-sale kicks off Wednesday (password: romtlive). Info on the Royal Oak show is posted here.

Garbage has been busy working on a new studio album which is due to be released in 2016. Back in April the band released two songs on a limited edition 10 inch single for Record Store Day, and the songs are now available digitally on iTunes and Amazon.

2015/06/06

The Replacements have reportedly once again called it a day. Pitchfork reports that last night at the end of the Replacements' set at Primavera Porto, Paul Westerberg told the crowd they were watching the band's final performance together. He revealed the band opted to stay at their hotel instead of coming to soundcheck that afternoon, reportedly muttered "lazy bastards to the end," and smashed his guitar before leaving the stage.

Billboard hinted at the potential implosion of the Replacements a few weeks ago. In their May 27th story, they reported that the Replacements had canceled two shows (shows that were originally postponed and awaiting make up dates). They also reported that sources "close to the band" said the Replacements were merely taking a break, but would NOT be heading back to the recording studio after several recent attempts.

It's unknown what will become of the new material the Replacements recently recorded. Stay tuned.

Perhaps it's fitting that the band covered a bit of "Love Will Tear Us Apart" at their recent gig in Barcelona...

2015/06/05

Flesh For Lulu guitarist & vocalist Nick Marsh has died. His death was confirmed earlier today by the official Flesh For Lulu Facebook page. Marsh had been working on a new project with Katharine Blake titled From The Deep, which was to be released later this summer. Marsh was 53 years old. R.I.P.

Luna's five studio albums will be re-issued later this year for a vinyl boxset titled Luna: Long Players (92 - 99). The collection also includes a sixth record featuring rarities, demos, and b-sides. The official release date is still TBA, however Pitchfork reports the set will be released through Captured Tracks late fall/early winter. The tracklisting for the rarities record is available to view below. Sadly their cover of "Straight Up" will not be included on the set...

The documentary R.E.M. by MTV is set to be released individually on Blu Ray & DVD on June 8th. The documentary was originally released as part of the larger 6-disc boxset REMTV last November; the new stand alone version of the release adds deleted scenes, five bonus live performances, and trailers.

In promotion of the release, Mike Mills spoke with EW about R.E.M. by MTV and acknowledged MTV played a role in R.E.M's success, but explained the channel wasn't the only way fans found out about R.E.M.:

"We figured there were multiple reasons for more people coming to our shows. I’m sure videos helped. College radio helped a lot. I think primarily our reputation as a really good live band got people out there. We would play in a town and get 10 or 15 people, and the next time we’d play there we’d get a hundred, and the next time we’d play there we’d get 300. So whatever the forces at play were, we were getting what we wanted, which was more people to the shows."

Mills revealed that all of the members of R.E.M. are still friends, but once again shuts down the idea of an R.E.M. reunion someday:

"We are all very dear friends, and that’s one of the reasons we were able to A) stay together as long as we did and B) break up in the manner we did. We’re all like family and we wanted to keep it that way. That enabled us to get through 30-plus years, but it also enabled us to walk away in a healthy fashion.""[A reunion] is off the table, but no one can predict the future. There could be a meteor with your name on it right now. But I would say no. We like the fact that we are so far the one band* that doesn’t get back together—but you never know."

...hang the dj

...hang the dj is the headquarters for my old radio show Time Warp, which aired on 89X radio until March 2017. I am currently hosting a new, independent, internet-based version of Time Warp. New episodes post Sunday mornings around 9am ET. Stream the show archives here or here.

...hang the dj is a music blog serving as a complement to my streaming program. As such, mostly old school and classic alternative bands are featured, however occasionally new music from shoegaze, dream pop, psych, post-punk, and darkwave genres will be featured. If you have a worthy music project that fits one of these genres, feel free to get in touch via email.